


Get Together Now

by softlyforgotten



Category: Bandom, Panic At The Disco, Phantom Planet, The Like, The Young Veins
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2010-08-22
Updated: 2010-08-22
Packaged: 2017-10-22 22:40:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,280
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/243372
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/softlyforgotten/pseuds/softlyforgotten
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"So do we get to do the classic teen makeover scene on Friday?"</p>
            </blockquote>





	Get Together Now

Ryan fell through Spencer's window and landed on the floor with a squawk and an awkward flail of limbs. Spencer looked up, grinning, and Ryan picked himself up, wincing.

"You moved your bed!" he said accusingly.

"According to my mad aunt, rearranging your room once in a while is good for inner clarity and peace," Spencer countered. "Also, I'm sick of you landing on top of me when I'm trying do my homework." He stretched out on his bed, science textbook open in front of him, and Ryan narrowed his eyes.

Spencer blinked. "Ryan," he said.

Ryan smiled.

" _Ryan_ ," Spencer said warningly, and Ryan made a run for it and jumped onto the bed, landing heavily on Spencer's back. "Ooof," Spencer said, in a resigned sort of way.

Ryan petted Spencer's hair in commiseration. "Hi," he said. "How was your day?"

Spencer wheezed, but Ryan was fairly confident it was all an act. Ryan didn't weigh enough for Spencer to get grumpy about Ryan being sprawled out on his back like this, so he just tucked his head over Spencer's shoulder and nuzzled at the side of Spencer's face for a moment until Spencer stopped being grumpy. Spencer was a pretty awesome best friend, and Ryan wasn't a very good one at all. He'd been reliably informed, though – by Alex and Z, who knew their stuff – that part of friendship was cuddling. Ryan was doing his best.

Spencer had known him since they were tiny, so he was naturally a little weirded out by the sudden change. That was fair. The other thing that was fair, though, was Ryan making up on all the years of being skittish and difficult. He could still be difficult, but he tried to avoid it. He was fairly confident that cuddling to excess was the way forward.

Eventually, Spencer gave up on trying to dislodge Ryan, slumping down and letting Ryan get settled more comfortably on top of him. Ryan hummed out something pleased; this was always the best part, when Spencer talked and Ryan got to tuck himself against Spencer's side. Alex and Z's tips about cuddling had been pretty good in general. It was definitely a positive change to Ryan's lifestyle. Ryan was happiest about it, though, when it meant that he got to curl up with Spencer like this. He didn't know why he'd spent so many years not letting people get close, only really touching Spencer properly in the middle of the night when he was frightened and sad and wanted to forget his dad. Ryan liked his new outlook much better.

"It was alright," Spencer said eventually. "Brendon set fire to himself again in Chemistry and I had to finish our experiment on my own, but apart from that, you know, pretty normal."

"Hmmn," Ryan said. He wasn't entirely sure if all the stories Spencer told about Brendon Urie were completely true; if they were, it made no sense at all to Ryan how Spencer could be friends with both of them. Brendon seemed like the exact opposite of Ryan in a million different ways, and the delighted way Spencer talked about him made Ryan feel selfish and small. He had quiet, horrible thoughts about obligation as opposed to choice. Mostly, he tried not to think about Brendon Urie very much at all.

"Oh, and there's a new update in the Continued Misadventures of Brendon Urie and Shane Valdez: Graffiti Brigadiers, if you're interested," Spencer said, twisting around awkwardly to smile up at Ryan, and Ryan sighed and slumped a little closer to Spencer. He knew it wasn't Spencer's fault or anything, but sometimes he really wished that Spencer hadn't gone to a different high school, one with Brendon Urie and Shane Valdez and impossibly cool people like _Pete Wentz_ , and, most importantly, without Ryan.

"I'm always interested," he said, and closed his eyes, pressing close against Spencer and listening.

\---

 _we're stuck on the roof_ , Ryan read, and stared at the screen of his cell. How was that even _possible_ , he wondered, and sent the question through to Spencer.

"This self-enforced loneliness has got to come to an end," Z said. "We're sure of this. We're unbreakable, Ryan. We're a committed team ready to set you on the path of love, alright?"

"You can't just keep pining over your best friend," Alex agreed wisely. "Not me, either. The lesser best friend."

"Basically," Jon said, shooting the two of them a look, "we're here to help."

Ryan's phone buzzed. _it seemed like an awesome idea at the time_ , Spencer had written back, and Ryan covered his mouth to keep from grinning too stupidly.

 _details_ , he wrote and then looked up. "I'm sorry, what?"

Z and Alex rolled their eyes at each other. Jon just propped his chin in his hands and looked mournful, which was a much more effective way to make Ryan feel sorry for him. He'd been tuning them out for a while now, mostly because they'd drawn some conclusions about Spencer a long time ago that Ryan didn't want to hear. It was best to just stop listening the moment they started talking about Ryan's love life. Jon was the only one who made him feel guilty for not getting properly told off.

"Sorry, Jon," he said, properly this time.

"He never talks to us like that," Alex said regretfully.

"We're not Jon Walker, I guess," Z said. "It's a hard life." She and Alex got distracted competing to see who could come up with the best tragic face at each other, and Ryan rolled his eyes. He turned back to Jon and raised his eyebrows.

"I've got the answer," Jon said, smiling suddenly and just a little wickedly. "The answer to all of your sorrows and hardships, Ryan."

"Oh, yeah?" Ryan said. "And what's that?"

Z and Alex looked up with twin winning smiles. Jon said, "A blind date this Friday."

"Oh, no," Ryan said, but was ignored while Jon, Z, and Alex exchanged a round of self-congratulatory high fives. His phone buzzed again, and his fingers twitched but he ended up not looking at Spencer's latest text for now, in favour of shoving Jon in the shoulder. "Jon, seriously," he said. "Explain."

"It's just that you seem so down lately!" Z put in. "We want to make you happy."

"Life is worth living, Ryan," Alex told him earnestly, eyes huge. "Young romance will remind you of that."

"Guys," Jon said.

"Sorry," Z said. "Tell him about the plan."

"The _plan_?" Ryan said.

"Not a plan!" Alex said. "Not ominous or – or—"

"Nefarious," Z suggested.

"Nefarious," Alex agreed, "in the least. At all."

"It's just my friend at the private school around the block," Jon said. "You know my friend, right?"

"His _friend_ ," Z repeated dreamily.

Ryan bit his lip on a smile. "I think you've brought him up once or twice," he said.

(Actually, Jon was pretty good at being mysteriously quiet about his crush at the nearby school – he hadn't even given them a name. Spencer went to the same school, so Ryan had asked him to try and work out who Jon's 'friend' was, but the brief descriptions Jon had let drop when they were high one time – "really fucking cute" and "really fucking charming" – hadn't been a lot for Spencer to go on.)

"Anyway," Jon said with a determined air, even though his cheeks were pink, "he was telling me about a friend of _his_ , who sounds like – like exactly your type, Ryan, really—"

"Blonde?" Alex said, and Z cackled, preening a little.

"No, he's a guy," Jon said, grinning. "So dark hair and dark eyes, that's about right, isn't it, Ryan?"

It was Alex's turn to preen. Z was just about in hysterics.

"I'm not even that shallow," Ryan grumbled.

"He's also really funny, apparently," Jon said. "Dry, and clever, and stuff. And he likes the same sort of music as you, although a little bit more – The Who and Peter Gabriel rather than The Beatles, sort of thing."

"Acceptable," Ryan said, after a moment's thought.

"And he's read all of Hunter S. Thompson," Jon said triumphantly. " _And_ Chuck Palahniuk and stuff. Although my friend was a bit evasive on whether he liked him or not, but at least you can argue about that, right?"

"I guess," Ryan said. "What's his name?"

Jon looked guilty. Z and Alex started giggling again.

"Oh, come _on_ ," Ryan said.

\---

Ryan was texting Alex when he walked out the school gate that afternoon, and he almost missed Spencer. Would have missed him entirely, except Spencer beeped loudly as Ryan walked past, and after Ryan had recovered from his fright, he turned to see Spencer bent over the steering wheel laughing so hard he was resting his face on his arms.

Ryan got in the car. "Asshole," he said.

"You didn't even see me," Spencer said. "And you didn't reply to my text earlier, I thought you'd died. You're the asshole."

"I got distracted," Ryan said, but he tripped his fingers down Spencer's arm, tapping a pattern lightly on Spencer's wrist in apology. "Was there an amazing grand finale?"

"Not really," Spencer said. "Eventually we got the window to the art room open and made a very undignified exit. Brendon's already planning a follow up trip, now that we know it's possible."

"Don't die or anything," Ryan said. He curled his fingers against Spencer's, just for a moment, before he moved back so Spencer could drive.

"Yeah, I'll try not to," Spencer said.

"Awesome," Ryan said, smiling at him. "Why are you picking me up?"

Spencer shrugged. "Mom let me have the car today, and I know yours is in the shop, again. _What_ distracted you?"

Ryan bit his lip. "Jon and Alex and Z have set me up on a date, apparently," he said.

Spencer blinked at him. "For real?"

"Yeah," Ryan said. "Friday night. I'm psyched."

"You sound it," Spencer said, rolling his eyes.

Ryan sat up a little straighter. Okay, so it was sort of stupid, but he didn't know why Spencer had the right to laugh at him. Just because Ryan didn't have a stupid, hyperactive, by all accounts pretty hot guy at his own school crawling all over him and taking him on amazing rooftop adventures. It didn't mean Ryan couldn't get someone to like him back, properly. Just because his last few relationships had been failed spectacularly – there was no need for Spencer to get all smugon him.

"Apparently he's a really nice guy, just my type," Ryan said coldly. "Funny and clever and cool. And hot, too, you know. So it should be great."

Spencer pulled the car into park outside Ryan's house. " _Apparently_?"

Ryan folded his arms. "I've never met him," he said. "It's a blind date. But I trust Jon's judgement." _If not Alex and Z's,_ he added to himself.

Spencer looked doubtful. "Are you sure this is such a great idea? Aren't blind dates like, the best excuse ever for incredibly creepy guys to get dates?"

Ryan gaped at him. "I don't even know which level you're insulting me on," he said. "Am I the creepy guy, or is it only creepy guys who would be interested in me?"

"Come on," Spencer said. "Don't be stupid. Just – you could get hacked up with an axe or something."

"Fuck you," Ryan said, glowering. "What, you feel the need to come along and protect my maidenly honour?"

"I would," Spencer said, because apparently he was the biggest jerk ever, "but I already promised Brendon I would do something with him on Friday."

Ryan stared at him in disbelief. "Fine then," he said, unbuckling his seatbelt. "I hope you and Brendon have a great time with your something. Just don't ask me to be the godfather, traitor."

Then he got out of the car and stormed inside.

\---

"So do we get to do the classic teen makeover scene on Friday?" Z asked on Thursday morning, alarmingly awake for the time of day.

"I can think of nothing worse," Ryan said. "I hate those scenes. They suck."

"Then why are they called classic?" Alex demanded. "Where's your sense of fun, Ryan?"

"Seriously," Z said. "You were in a shitty mood all day yesterday, too. What's going on?"

"Nothing," Ryan said, glancing down at his phone. Spencer still hadn't called.

\---

On Friday night, Alex, Z, and Jon all turned up to Ryan's house, invading his bedroom with good cheer and friendship and things in bright colours. Ryan wasn't entirely sure he approved.

"I'm not letting you do anything that could constitute the term 'makeover'," Ryan warned.

"We're just here to hang out," Z said, sprawling back on his bed.

"And make sure you remember to go," Jon said. Ryan considered getting annoyed about that, but Jon had a point.

Ryan flipped open his cell again, but Spencer still wasn't texting him. Something sad curled in Ryan's stomach, and he wished he didn't have this thing tonight, wished that he could curl up under his blankets instead and indulge in the full misery of imagining what Brendon and Spencer were getting up to. He thought about how much fun Spencer would be having without him, how probably they were watching a movie and holding hands, and Brendon would kiss Spencer goodnight or something. Maybe he wouldn't even _say_ goodnight, he'd notice Spencer's hips and push Spencer into the backseat of Spencer's mom's car and pull off his shirt and—

"Ryan?" Jon said. "You alright?"

"Fine," Ryan said.

"Um," Jon said uncertainly. "It's just you're looking a bit—"

"Crazy-eyed," Z said.

Ryan drew in a breath. "I'm okay," he said. He squeezed his eyes shut tight and told himself that again, told himself, _you're fine_. Then he opened his eyes, smiled brightly, and said, "That paisley shirt, do you think?"

\---

"I still think the first outfit looked good," Ryan said, plucking at his yellow t-shirt. "It looked dashing."

"The end of spring is not the right time for a suit," Z said. "Besides, now you look hot. Isn't that better?"

"I guess," Ryan said. He turned slightly, and Alex made a sympathetic face at him. Ryan smiled back. He liked his friends.

"Okay," Jon said, looking up from his cell. "My friend says he dropped him off here about ten minutes ago, he's just around the corner there, in one of the booths towards the back."

"Dim lighting," Z said knowledgeably. "Very romantic."

"Oh," Jon said, "and the guy isn't very into blind dates? So he doesn't know he's on one yet, but don't worry, win him over with your charm and wit, have fun!"

Ryan spun around, mouth open to yell, but Alex gave him a little push and he ended up stumbling through the doors. He glared back at them, but they just beamed and waved at him. As he watched, a dark-haired guy with red glasses approached and they got distracted. Ryan folded his arms. He was being abandoned by all his friends, this week. Spencer wasn't even here to defend his honour.

Then he walked around the corner, and apparently, Spencer was.

Spencer looked up at him. "Ryan?"

"How the fuck did you find out when and where it was?" Ryan demanded. He should be more freaked out by Spencer's continuing psychic abilities, he knew, but he was too busy smiling stupidly just now.

"What?" Spencer blinked at him. "What are you talking about?"

"My date," Ryan said.

"Your date is here?" Spencer made an unhappy face. "Maybe I should get going—"

"Wait," Ryan said. "What are you doing here if you're not protecting me from axe  
murderers?"

"Brendon dumped me here," Spencer said. "I'm meant to be waiting for someone, but I  
don't think they're showing up."

Ryan had an uneasy feeling in his gut. "Waiting for who?"

"Don't know, exactly," Spencer said, rolling his eyes. "I think I'm being set up."

"Oh," Ryan said. He looked around at the restaurant. It wasn't very full yet. There were a couple of families, some older couples. The only other people on their own were a girl with red curly hair texting someone and an old guy who winked at Ryan. Ryan looked back at Spencer, dark(ish – that was the trouble with blind dates, goddamnit) hair, and—

"You don't even have dark eyes," Ryan said indignantly.

"Um," Spencer said. "What?"

"I'm just saying," Ryan said, "they said you had dark eyes."

"I'm – sorry to disappoint?" Spencer still sounded very confused. " _Who_ did?"

"I like your eyes just fine," Ryan said, staring at the floor. "They didn't have to lie."

"Okay." Spencer stood up, grabbed Ryan's elbow. Ryan looked down at Spencer's hand there. "What's going on?"

"You're my blind date," Ryan said. "I think."

Spencer's eyes went big and shocked, and for a moment they just stared at each other. Something in Ryan was trembling, heart fluttering, hands shakier than usual. He was glad Spencer was holding onto him. It was an easier way to stand up.

Then Spencer smiled. "Huh," he said. "You know, that actually makes sense."

"Yeah?" Ryan said faintly, and Spencer started to laugh.

At first Ryan felt kind of small and strangely miserable, but Spencer laughing that hard was always a pretty awesome thing to watch, and Ryan started to smile, too, and eventually they were clinging onto each other in a desperate attempt to keep each other upright.

"You said you were an axe murderer!" Ryan finally said, when he could catch his breath.

" _You_ said I was just your type!" Spencer countered. His face went horrified for a moment. "Oh my god, Brendon said I was in for a good time," and Ryan buried his face against Spencer's shoulder, muffling his laughter, and then just hanging on, breathing in.

When he pulled back, he started giggling again. "Dude. Are you wearing eyeliner?"

"Fuck you," Spencer said. "Brendon said the makeover is a classic movie scene and we had to do it. You wanna go get milkshakes?"

"Sure," Ryan said. "I hate this place, I can't believe they sent us here."

"Right?" Spencer shook his head.

"Actually," Ryan said, "I can't even work out how we didn't figure this out sooner."

"Brendon didn't tell me anything until, like, ten minutes ago," Spencer said, shrugging. "He just dropped me off here and said he'd be back later."

"But what did Brendon have to do with – wait," Ryan said. "Oh my god. Does Brendon know Jon?"

" _Your_ Jon?" Spencer looked confused. "I don't think so."

"Does he know anyone from my school?" Ryan asked. "Like, or just, someone who doesn't go to your school who he's mentioned—"

"You mean Barista Guy?" Spencer said, like it was obvious. "That's not your Jon, is it?"

Ryan laughed in what he liked to think of as the beginnings of vaguely evil delight. He was going to wreak so much revenge on Jon for this. "Oh man," he said. "Jon works at Starbucks on weekends. This is hilarious, I bet Brendon is Jon's crush."

" _Jon's_ crush," Spencer said. "Brendon has the most epic crush in the world, seriously. I thought your Jon just got high all the time and did occasional illegal things with you and Alex and Z? Are you sure they're not different people? Brendon's Barista Guy has a lisp and adopts kittens and doodles unicorns on napkins and things."

"That's him," Ryan said, grinning. "This is the best thing ever. I wonder if Jon never mentioned his name because he knew I knew Brendon through you?"

"Didn't he realise that I was your friend, then, for this thing?"

"I don't think he ever bothered to find out your name," Ryan admitted. "He was pretty excited just at the idea. He's not big on details. None of them are, really."

"Oh man," Spencer said, shaking his head. "Jerks. I bet they're still out there, too, congratulating themselves on a job well done."

"All of them," Ryan agreed sadly. "All jerks. Shall we go disillusion them?"

"I have a better idea," Spencer said.

\---

Ryan was almost shaking by the time Spencer grabbed his hand and dragged him out towards the front door of the restaurant. They'd had to do a few practice runs, because Spencer said they'd laugh otherwise or whatever, and Ryan's mouth felt swollen and tingly and his stomach was full of butterflies and he was kind of hot all over. He didn't know how it had turned out that Spencer was the cool one, the unaffected one who could do something like this for a laugh. Ryan wanted to either push Spencer up against something or just curl up into him, hide his face against Spencer's neck, and neither option was open to him.

"Okay," Spencer said, "I can see them leaning against a wall nearby. Smug assholes."

"Do we really have to—"

"You can't punk out on me now," Spencer said, sounding horrified. "Brendon _tricked_ me into a date, the douche, and it was a date with you, this is too good to pass up. C'mon, you ready?"

"Ready as I'll ever be," Ryan said glumly, and Spencer squeezed his hand and pulled him out through the glass doors.

He gave Ryan half a second to compose himself, and then he turned around and caught Ryan's face in his hands, pulling him in and kissing him hotly. Ryan wrapped his arms around Spencer's neck and moved with him, the two of them tripping their way clumsily across the pavement until they were leaning up against Spencer's mom's car. Spencer fisted one hand in Ryan's hair, tugging slightly, and Ryan groaned and shoved his leg in between Spencer's, pressed up tight and warm against him, as close as he could get.

"Okay, hang tight," Spencer murmured against Ryan's lips, as if Ryan had any intention of going anywhere or doing anything else ever again, and then he fumbled behind them and the door popped open and they fell in. Spencer made a pained sound, so Ryan lifted himself up for long enough that Spencer could wriggle back into the driver's seat and get comfortable. Spencer looked up at him and grinned, eyes bright and laughing, but Ryan couldn't make himself smile. He didn't know what Spencer saw in his face that made his expression change, his eyes get bigger, pupils blown, but Ryan didn't particularly care anymore, either. He dropped back down against Spencer and kissed him again, vaguely aware of his feet kicking ridiculously out the side of the car.

Spencer had one arm hooked up around Ryan, keeping him close, and the other still twisted in his hair, and Ryan was slumped against the side of the seats, trying not to let his full weight rest on top of Spencer. He was pretty sure the gearstick would be pressing up uncomfortably into Spencer, but Spencer didn't seem to be worried about it, so Ryan ignored it too, concentrated on rolling his hips against Spencer's and proving exactly why Spencer shouldn't have laughed at the idea of Ryan being a good time.

"Excuse me, boys," someone said, and Ryan reluctantly dragged himself away, twisting uncomfortably to glare at the intruder. A woman in her forties looked back, raising her eyebrows in an amused sort of way. "Possibly you two should find somewhere a little more private to do this," she said.

"Right," Spencer said breathlessly, because he was a horrible suck up like that. "Sorry, ma'am. We'll be right on our way, then."

"Have fun," she said dryly, and went on down the footpath.

Ryan moved back to kiss Spencer, but Spencer just laughed, shoving him off.

"I think we've made our point," he said, sitting up and straightening his back with a groan. "Nice work, man. You want to go laugh at them?" Ryan stared at him for a moment, and Spencer laughed again, shaking his head and looking away. His eyes were bright, cheeks very pink.

"No," Ryan said. "I want to go back to your place and make out."

Spencer blinked at him. "What?" He sounded uncertain, younger than Ryan again for the first time in a long while.

"Or I guess if you still wanted to get milkshakes we could do that," Ryan said. "Will you kiss me in there, too? I'll pay."

"I'm – are you offering to buy make outs?"

"No," Ryan said. "I thought this was a date."

"Ryan," Spencer said softly, and Ryan's bravado faltered.

"I mean," he said, "if you, if you still wanted to – I know that you don't—"

"Ryan," Spencer said, a little hysterically, "are you – seriously, what are you talking about?"

"Nothing," Ryan said. "Sorry." He moved back to his seat, curled his knees up to his chest and looked straight ahead. "Will you drive me home? Please?"

Spencer said, " _Ryan_."

"What?" Ryan stared at his knees.

"This is stupid," Spencer said. "This is so stupid."

"What?" Ryan repeated. "People thinking I'm someone you'd be interested in?"

Spencer looked at him for a long moment. "No," he said, "Brendon thinking he'd need to trick me into going anywhere with you."

Ryan looked up. Spencer leaned over and kissed him. It was shorter and sweeter than before. Spencer's fingers brushed the nape of Ryan's neck, under his curls, warm and dry and sending shivers down Ryan's spine. Ryan clutched Spencer's other hand, twisting their fingers together tightly.

"Spence," Ryan whispered, when Spencer leaned back a little. Spencer stayed close, smiling at Ryan like Ryan had surprised him, had shown him something new.

"Milkshakes?" he said, and Ryan pulled Spencer's hand to his mouth and kissed it. It felt like a clear enough answer.


End file.
